Storytelling, the Process of Novel Writing and the Relevance of Fiction

Storytelling is one of our oldest forms of communication: cavemen would often paint tales on walls, with the oldest record of this found on the island of Sulawesi dating back as long as 44,000 years ago. Suffice it to say, storytelling has played an integral role in our development, relationships and societal changes ever since.

Yet, in the twenty first century, with an ever-growing plethora of knowledge to be found both online and via physical books, the role of fiction may have been diminished to allow room for the ever-growing appetite for educational books. So, beyond anecdotes swapped at dinner parties, or escapism via a swinging or caped superhero on the big screen, how truly relevant are stories these days?

One of the wonders of storytelling is that the possibilities of imagination are endless. We’re perfectly capable of recounting what we know, and yet to mentally construct and visualise a new world is to imagine how this could be possible and thus bridge the gap between our current reality and future opportunities for change. We’re all aware of the saying that life can often imitate art, and as such stories can create hypothetical scenarios that could potentially be applicable and improve our way of life.

The advancement of humankind has been largely thanks to not only discoveries, but also inventions which are often the product of “outside the box” thinking, thanks to either our own created stories or prompted by the vision others provide. Additionally, stories encourage us to consider and understand others’ viewpoints and the reasoning behind their own actions, both real (as in some historical accounts) and imaginary, and in doing so recognise aspects of our human nature that unite us all, as well as imagine the lived experience of others.

We only see the world through our own senses: as such, your life is your own story of your understanding of the world: the key highlights and moments to remember determined by you, according to your thoughts and feelings at that given time. It features your unique upbringing, skills, social status, physical abilities and more.

We also know the joy of suspending one’s disbelief: to indulge ourselves, to dream of the hypothetical scenarios, especially if we are goal-oriented, working towards a future where our endeavours will pay off, our successes finally widely acknowledged. (There’s a reason why practising an Oscars speech to a shampoo bottle in the shower is a well-known trope). It can often be during these moments that we can experience those famous Eureka strikes of inspiration.

So, yes, there is simple pleasure of escapism. Yet this also helps us appreciate all that we have, similar to travelling the world, and feeling flooded by nostalgia when we finally return home.

You can access my video offering 3 novel writing tips to authors, both established and new, here.

Here are 3 additional tips, I hope you enjoy reading them.

Know your protagonist’s main motive, and the obstacle currently obstructing them from achieving their goal.

Your protagonist is the key component for your entire novel. Without a protagonist the reader cares for, they won’t be invested in the story and subsequent chain of events.

Additionally your protagonist actively moves the story forward. Avoid the passive protagonist – who essentially stands on the side-lines and witnesses events unfold – at all costs. (In fact, any character who could be removed from the story without the plot being affected in any way needs to be rewritten or cut out altogether). Therefore their core desire needs to be established from the get-go, as this will motivate them throughout. Their want is also a thinly veiled cover for their true need: as an example, their desire is to be promoted at work. This is a smokescreen for the underlying need, which is to feel validated, accepted and that their life is purposeful, especially if they feel unfulfilled by said career, yet are in denial. What’s also crucial is to gain clarity on the motivation of other characters, to avoid making them one-dimensional stereotypes who only exist to help the protagonist come to certain realisations along the way.

Prologues are popular because they begin with extreme tension, and while it’s important to open mid-conflict, tension only resonates with the reader once they understand its significance and the relevant backdrop, which is why you can begin with high tension, then clarify your protagonist’s sense of normality, including their current desire, before introducing the inciting incident.

Know your protagonist’s main weakness, and ensure they must face – and ideally, overcome this – during the course of the novel.

Your protagonist’s flaws and fears are key aspects that make them relatable and charming. Even Indiana Jones was scared of snakes – and ultimately, your character should be forced to face their greatest fear. Again, like Indie being thrown in the snake pit during Raiders of the Lost Ark.

One thing to be aware of is when we try to use writing as a form of personal escapism to the extent that we project our desires onto characters and make them one-dimensional, indestructible, and essentially clichés.

Part of what made The Hitch Hiker’s Guide to the Galaxy so charming is the irony and relatability of Arthur Dent, that something so fantastical would happen to such an average run-of-the-mill individual. This is hilariously comic but also gives the reader a sounding board for these fantastical situations – it allows them to ground themselves via his own humanity and reactions to the absurdity of the extra-terrestrial scenarios he now has to face.

Apply write what you know correctly.

It’s important to recognise this this famous phrase doesn’t need to be taken quite as literally as it sounds. You don’t need to pen your own autobiography as a work of fiction. Instead, write when you know in terms of emotional resonance, as well as factual information where applicable, rather than an exact retelling.

You can of course create a premise which is fantastical, entirely removed from your own sense of normality – provided you are able to apply write what you know during moments of key emotional resonance. There are certain universal experiences we can all relate to. The feeling of being nervous before having to speak publicly. Feeling humiliated if said event doesn’t go according to plan. Outgrowing certain places and people. How it feels to say goodbye. How it feels to be proud of a certain achievement.

These are the moments where you can and should apply this rule, knowing that no matter the setting, to relate to a human being on a deeper fundamental level is to truly engage your reader. It’s how we can connect to characters in big budget Hollywood movies, sci-fi epics, or complex crime dramas despite never having been a police officer, lived on another planet or had superhuman abilities. Provided the character is well rounded, they still have these core experiences that the reader connects to, so be sure to apply write what you know in these instances, connecting to your own human experience, remembering once again that all characters should be flawed.

*BONUS TIP: Structure in the way that feels natural to you.

There’s no perfect way to structure your novel – some authors write a chapter by chapter breakdown beforehand, some begin writing the first chapter freeform and then plot out key moments while leaving room for characters to guide the direction of the story, some authors – including, most famously, Neil Gaiman – simply write as though venturing down a dark corridor with no idea how events will transpire, instead trusting in that intuitive creative state of flow and only pausing to look back and make sure everything checks out once the editing process begins.

Speaking of, editing will be a key component so try to resist the urge to constantly read back over what you’ve already written and meticulously edit as you go along. As Stephen King famously recommends in his book On Writing, write the messy first draft with the door closed, ergo for your eyes only, and the second with the door open, considering how the prose will be interpreted through the eyes of others, and keeping the presence of the reader in mind when going through this much more critical and conscious editing stage.

Forget this all during the first draft – it’s simply you and your story. Have fun, trust the process, and keep writing.